Implantable medical devices can be delivered to a target location within a patient and implanted therein. For example, endoluminal delivery techniques are well known. The delivery system typically includes a sheath and/or a catheter through which the implant is delivered to the target location. The implant is generally deployed from the sheath or catheter at the target location. Some implantable devices are completely self-expanding; they self-expand when released from the sheath or catheter and do not require any further expansion after the self-expanding step. The self-expansion can occur by proximally retracting the sheath or catheter, by pushing the implantable device from the sheath or catheter, or a combination thereof. Some implantable devices, however, are configured and adapted to be actuated during or after the self-expansion step. Exemplary replacement heart valves which can be actuated after a self-expansion step can be found described in co-pending application Ser. No. 10/982,388, filed Nov. 5, 2004, and application Ser. No. 10/746,120, filed Dec. 23, 2003, the disclosures of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. It may be advantageous to lock an expandable medical device in a fully deployed and locked configuration to secure the device in the deployed.
During the delivery process the medical device can be actuated by the delivery system using one or more actuators. For example, an actuator (e.g., in the form of a knob on a handle of the delivery system) may be actuated (e.g., turned) to cause a component of the delivery system to move relative to another component in the delivery system or relative to the implantable device, or both. It is generally desirable to make the delivery process as easy as possible for the physician, reduce the time needed to complete the procedure, and reduce the mechanical complexity of the delivery system. In some delivery procedures, multiple components of the delivery system need to be actuated to deploy the implant. It may also be necessary to ensure that multiple steps are carried out in a certain order. What are needed are delivery systems which can simplify the deployment procedure of the medical device and/or ensure that multiple steps are performed in a certain order.